By their very nature, structured settlements are not meant to be sold or transferred. They are set up to provide annuity payments over many years on a periodic fixed schedule. However having a fixed schedule set for decades does not account for the many ways the people's personal circumstances change over time. Many times what was right ten years ago is not the best solution for you a decade later. Because the court that agreed the settlement believed that it acted in your best interest, then it will not easily agree to a sale or transfer. However the good news is that there are circumstances that a court will agree to a transfer if it sees that a sale is your best interest. In most cases this means that you have a pressing need for short term money for a long term benefit. Valid reasons are typically things like paying unexpected medical bills, or coming across a unique investment opportunity (that will produce significantly higher returns than the structured settlement return). Another good reason is to invest in real estate, either as a down payment for your own home, or possibly for a rental property with a good yield, as long as the court considers it a secure investment. A court will also look favorably on a transfer to be used to fund educational expenses, either for yourself or a close relative. A good education is a long term investment in an individual, as most people can make a higher salary after achieving a higher qualification than before. Finally valid reasons are also agreed in the case of personal debt. If for example you have an excessive amount of consumer debt, the monthly payments can be crippling, and you can be in a debt trap situation. By showing the court that the debt situation will not be repeated, they may agree to a partial transfer to pay down consumer debt to a manageable level. So these are just some of the reasons to be able to sell your annuity payments. Remember the general philosophy is that your personal circumstances will be substantially improved if the court allows the sale.